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Global reef fish diversity is studied with metrics incorporating species abundances and functional traits; these identify diversity hotspots corresponding to the diversity of functional traits amongst individuals in the community, and greater evenness in the abundance of reef fishes at higher latitudes, findings that contrast with patterns reported previously using traditional richness-based methods. Cooler biodiversity hotspots revealed Traditional measures of biodiversity record species richness across different areas — in other words, they just count the number of species. This approach takes no account of the fact that different species will have different abundances, or that the range of functional traits present in a community is not dependent solely on the number of species. This paper presents a new measure of functional diversity, incorporating species abundances and functional traits into a global census of a vertebrate group —2,473 marine reef fish species — at 1,844 sites. The results reveal previously unknown diversity hotspots in temperate regions and in the Tropical Eastern Pacific, which are outside the species-rich tropical regions traditionally associated with high biodiversity. Species richness has dominated our view of global biodiversity patterns for centuries 1 , 2 . The dominance of this paradigm is reflected in the focus by ecologists and conservation managers on richness and associated occurrence-based measures for understanding drivers of broad-scale diversity patterns and as a biological basis for management 3 , 4 . However, this is changing rapidly, as it is now recognized that not only the number of species but the species present, their phenotypes and the number of individuals of each species are critical in determining the nature and strength of the relationships between species diversity and a range of ecological functions (such as biomass production and nutrient cycling) 5 . Integrating these measures should provide a more relevant representation of global biodiversity patterns in terms of ecological functions than that provided by simple species counts. Here we provide comparisons of a traditional global biodiversity distribution measure based on richness with metrics that incorporate species abundances and functional traits. We use data from standardized quantitative surveys of 2,473 marine reef fish species at 1,844 sites, spanning 133 degrees of latitude from all ocean basins, to identify new diversity hotspots in some temperate regions and the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean. These relate to high diversity of functional traits amongst individuals in the community (calculated using Rao’s Q 6 ), and differ from previously reported patterns in functional diversity and richness for terrestrial animals, which emphasize species-rich tropical regions only 7 , 8 . There is a global trend for greater evenness in the number of individuals of each species, across the reef fish species observed at sites (‘community evenness’), at higher latitudes. This contributes to the distribution of functional diversity hotspots and contrasts with well-known latitudinal gradients in richness 2 , 4 . Our findings suggest that the contribution of species diversity to a range of ecosystem functions varies over large scales, and imply that in tropical regions, which have higher numbers of species, each species contributes proportionally less to community-level ecological processes on average than species in temperate regions. Metrics of ecological function usefully complement metrics of species diversity in conservation management, including when identifying planning priorities and when tracking changes to biodiversity values.

How can getting outdoors help us to look after our mental health? In a powerful combination of contemporary neuroscience, psychoanalysis and brilliant storytelling, The Well Gardened Mind investigates the magic that many gardeners have known for years, working with nature can radically transform our health, wellbeing and confidence. Prisoners given the chance to grow plants are less likely to reoffend. At-risk young people who get their hands in the soil are more likely to stay in education. Elderly people who garden live longer and have a better quality of life. Sue Stuart-Smith tells brilliant, illuminating stories of people struggling with stress, depression, trauma and addiction, from asylum seekers to veterans, inner-city young people to the retired. This is a glorious book of science, insight and anecdote that shows how our understanding of nature and its restorative powers is only just beginning to flower.

The contributions of species to ecosystem functions or services depend not only on their presence but also on their local abundance. Progress in predictive spatial modelling has largely focused on species occurrence rather than abundance. As such, limited guidance exists on the most reliable methods to explain and predict spatial variation in abundance. We analysed the performance of 68 abundance‐based species distribution models fitted to 800 000 standardised abundance records for more than 800 terrestrial bird and reef fish species. We found a large amount of variation in the performance of abundance‐based models. While many models performed poorly, a subset of models consistently reconstructed range‐wide abundance patterns. The best predictions were obtained using random forests for frequently encountered and abundant species and for predictions within the same environmental domain as model calibration. Extending predictions of species abundance outside of the environmental conditions used in model training generated poor predictions. Thus, interpolation of abundances between observations can help improve understanding of spatial abundance patterns, but our results indicate extrapolated predictions of abundance under changing climate have a much greater uncertainty. Our synthesis provides a road map for modelling abundance patterns, a key property of species distributions that underpins theoretical and applied questions in ecology and conservation.

There has been a growing awareness in recent years of the importance of play in children's learning and development - but that awareness has not been accompanied by sufficient scholarly attention, outside of conceptual studies and how-to textbooks. This collection fills that gap by bringing together scholars from a range of fields and methodological approaches to look at play from a practice-based perspective. Moving beyond the dominant voice of developmental psychology, the book offers a number of new ways of approaching children's play and the roles of adults in supporting it; as a result, it will be valuable to anyone working with or studying children at play.

Global warming is markedly changing diverse coral reef ecosystems through an increasing frequency and magnitude of mass bleaching events 1 – 3 . How local impacts scale up across affected regions depends on numerous factors, including patchiness in coral mortality, metabolic effects of extreme temperatures on populations of reef-dwelling species 4 and interactions between taxa. Here we use data from before and after the 2016 mass bleaching event to evaluate ecological changes in corals, algae, fishes and mobile invertebrates at 186 sites along the full latitudinal span of the Great Barrier Reef and western Coral Sea. One year after the bleaching event, reductions in live coral cover of up to 51% were observed on surveyed reefs that experienced extreme temperatures; however, regional patterns of coral mortality were patchy. Consistent declines in coral-feeding fishes were evident at the most heavily affected reefs, whereas few other short-term responses of reef fishes and invertebrates could be attributed directly to changes in coral cover. Nevertheless, substantial region-wide ecological changes occurred that were mostly independent of coral loss, and instead appeared to be linked directly to sea temperatures. Community-wide trophic restructuring was evident, with weakening of strong pre-existing latitudinal gradients in the diversity of fishes, invertebrates and their functional groups. In particular, fishes that scrape algae from reef surfaces, which are considered to be important for recovery after bleaching 2 , declined on northern reefs, whereas other herbivorous groups increased on southern reefs. The full impact of the 2016 bleaching event may not be realized until dead corals erode during the next decade 5 , 6 . However, our short-term observations suggest that the recovery processes, and the ultimate scale of impact, are affected by functional changes in communities, which in turn depend on the thermal affinities of local reef-associated fauna. Such changes will vary geographically, and may be particularly acute at locations where many fishes and invertebrates are close to their thermal distribution limits 7 . Fish and invertebrate communities transformed across the span of the Great Barrier Reef following the 2016 bleaching event due to a decline in coral-feeding fishes resulting from coral loss, and because of different regional responses of key trophic groups to the direct effect of temperature.

Stepping impairments are associated with physical and cognitive decline in older adults and increased fall risk. Exercise interventions can reduce fall risk, but adherence is often low. A new exergame involving step training may provide an enjoyable exercise alternative for preventing falls in older people. To assess the feasibility and safety of unsupervised, home-based step pad training and determine the effectiveness of this intervention on stepping performance and associated fall risk in older people. Single-blinded two-arm randomized controlled trial comparing step pad training with control (no-intervention). Thirty-seven older adults residing in independent-living units of a retirement village in Sydney, Australia. Intervention group (IG) participants were provided with a computerized step pad system connected to their TVs and played a step game as often as they liked (with a recommended dose of 2-3 sessions per week for 15-20 minutes each) for eight weeks. In addition, IG participants were asked to complete a choice stepping reaction time (CSRT) task once each week. CSRT, the Physiological Profile Assessment (PPA), neuropsychological and functional mobility measures were assessed at baseline and eight week follow-up. Thirty-two participants completed the study (86.5%). IG participants played a median 2.75 sessions/week and no adverse events were reported. Compared to the control group, the IG significantly improved their CSRT (F31,1 = 18.203, p<.001), PPA composite scores (F31,1 = 12.706, p = 0.001), as well as the postural sway (F31,1 = 4.226, p = 0.049) and contrast sensitivity (F31,1 = 4.415, p = 0.044) PPA sub-component scores. In addition, the IG improved significantly in their dual-task ability as assessed by a timed up and go test/verbal fluency task (F31,1 = 4.226, p = 0.049). Step pad training can be safely undertaken at home to improve physical and cognitive parameters of fall risk in older people without major cognitive and physical impairments. Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12611001081909.

Based on the tale of Merida, a skilled archer and princess who is determined to carve her own path in life. She defies an age-old custom---and unleashes a beastly curse upon the kingdom. To set things right, Merida embarks on a perilous quest and discovers the meaning of true bravery.

Considerable empirical evidence supports recovery of reef fish populations with fishery closures. In countries where full exclusion of people from fishing may be perceived as inequitable, fishing-gear restrictions on nonselective and destructive gears may offer socially relevant management alternatives to build recovery offish biomass. Even so, few researchers have statistically compared the responses of tropical reef fisheries to alternative management strategies. We tested for the effects of fishery closures and fishing gear restrictions on tropical reef fish biomass at the community and family level. We conducted 1,396 underwater surveys at 617 unique sites across a spatial hierarchy within 22 global marine ecoregions that represented 5 realms. We compared total biomass across local fish assemblages and among 20 families of reef fishes inside marine protected areas (MPAs) with different fishing restrictions: no-take, hook-and-line fishing only, several fishing gears allowed, and sites open to all fishing gears. We included a further category representing remote sites, wherefishing pressure is low. As expected, full fishery closures, (i.e., no-take zones) most benefited communityand family-level fish biomass in comparison with restrictions on fishing gears and openly fished sites. Although biomass responses to fishery closures were highly variable across families, some fishery targets (e.g., Carcharhinidae and Lutjanidae) respondedpositively to multiple restrictions on fishing gears (i.e., where gears other than hook and line were not permitted). Remoteness also positively affected the response of community-level fish biomass and many fish families. Our findings provide strong support for the role of fishing restrictions in building recovery offish biomass and indicate important interactions among fishing-gear types that affect biomass of a diverse set of reef fish families. Hay fuertes evidencias empíricas que respaldan la recuperación de las poblaciones de peces de arrecifes con el cierre de las pesquerías. En los países en los que la exclusión total de pescadores puede ser percibida como injusta, las restricciones de equipos de pesca para equipos no selectivos y destructivos pueden ofrecer alternativas de manejo socialmente relevantes para construir la recuperación de la biomasa de los peces. Aún así, pocos investigadores han comparado estadísticamente las respuestas de las pesquerías de peces tropicales de arrecifes a las estrategias de manejo alternativo. Probamos los efectos de los cierres de las pesquerías y las restricciones del equipo de pesca sobre la biomasa de peces tropicales a nivel familia y a nivel comunidad. Realizamos 1,396 censos submarinos en 617 sitios únicos a través de una jerarquía espacial dentro de 22 ecoregiones marinas mundiales que representaron cinco ámbitos. Comparamos la biomasa total entre los grupos de peces locales y entre 20 familias de peces de arrecife dentro de áreas marinas protegidas (AMP) con diferentes restricciones para la pesca: pesca prohibida, pesca de anzuelo y sedal únicamente, varios equipos de pesca permitidos, y sitios abiertos a todo tipo de equipos de pesca. Incluimos una categoría más que representó a los sitios remotos, en donde la presión por la pesca es baja. Como se esperaba, el cierre total de las pesquerías (es decir, zonas de pesca prohibida) benefició más a nivel de la comunidad y de la familia la biomasa de los peces en comparación con las restricciones para los equipos de pesca y los sitios con pesca abierta. Aunque las respuestas en la biomasa al cierre de las pesquerías fueron altamente variables entre familias, algunos objetivos de la pesca (p. ej.: Carcharinidae y Lutjanidae) respondieron positivamente a las restricciones múltiples para los equipos de pesca (es decir, en donde no estaban permitidos otros equipos además del sedal y el anzuelo). La lejanía también afectó positivamente la respuesta de la biomasa de peces a nivel de comunidad y de muchas familias. Nuestros resultados proporcionan un fuerte respaldo para el papel de las restricciones de pesca en la construcción de la recuperación de la biomasa de peces e indican interacciones importantes entre los tipos de equipos de pesca que afectan a la biomasa de un conjunto diverso de familias de peces de arrecife.